Ikumbo Graduates to Receive Secondary Degrees

For the past two years, the large majority of Ikumbo Secondary School’s inaugural graduating class have been pursuing post-secondary education.  The end of this semester will mark the graduation of 16 Ikumbo students from their programs!  Ikumbo Education Trust members, including parents and community members, raised a little over $5,000 last year. With the help of our generous donors, Harambee was able to match this amount in contributions to the Trust to ensure that each of the students will leave school without any debt and with all of their school fees paid in full.

Updates on 2 of our graduates:

Patrick M., a soon to be Level 6 Certified Public Accountant, will graduate from his program in May 2013. Patrick is deciding whether to continue his studies to get a Bachelor’s degree or to pursue accounting work.

Denis M. is currently completing his training in library science at a local government run school and is considering returning to Ikumbo to assist in the growth and organization of the Ikumbo Secondary School’s newly furnish library.

Congratulations to the young men and women of Ikumbo for their hard work and dedication to their studies!

Growth of Ikumbo Secondary

A $10,000 grant from the government of Kenya for grassroots development has enabled Ikumbo Secondary School to build a new dining facility. The facility is roughly 2700 sqft and will also be able to accommodate the entire student body for assemblies and meetings. The walls of the structure have been completed and the we expect it will be completed in the next 2 months. 

The student body at Ikumbo has also grown. There are currently 140 students enrolled in grades 9-12, including students from the surrounding communities. We continue to try to understand the needs of the students and teachers at Ikumbo as it evolves into a larger community day school. 

--Matt-- 2/13/2013

The pride of Ikumbo Secondary is the first class of graduates. This group is incredible! They started their high school studies in 2007 when there were only two unfinished semi-permanent classrooms. As Harambee for All Children worked each year with the community to construct facilities, the students advanced. With their graduation in 2010, the community formed the Ikumbo Education Trust, a body designed to support the continuing education of Ikumbo graduates through a combination of savings and scholarships. In early 2011, 17 students from the inaugural class enrolled in 5 technical colleges around the country. I had the chance to meet most of this group while they were at home in the village following their first term.

First, I have known many of these students now for 4 years and it is incredible to see their growth. They have become mature, intelligent, well-spoken, young men and women. Each student shared their experiences over the past few months in technical college. They talked about coursework, meeting classmates from all over Kenya, and living away from home. Though they experienced challenges with finding housing at the crowded campus hostels, and having to share textbooks for their courses, they also talked about the opportunities these degrees would create for them whether in the village or in the region.

I also had the chance to visit 2 students, Patrick Mbae and Isaac Marete, in their new home at Meru Technical College. Patrick and Isaac proudly showed me around the campus, sharing their experiences halfway through their first year of the Diploma course in Accounting. Both had scored exceptionally well on their first term exams and are well on their way to becoming Certified Public Accountants in the next 2 years. Equally important, they are growing into community leaders. Future Davis’, who will guide future generations of students in Ikumbo through their education.

(L to R): Isaac Marete, Kibara Karambi, Patrick Mbae

(Note: Kibara is Davis' cousin, who attended Igwanjau Secondary and is not a recipient of an HFAC scholarship but is attending the same program)

In addition to the graduates, I also met with their parents and grandparents. In a half-hour meeting they shared their hopes for their children’s future in college. They also voiced concerns about continued funding, not only for the first class but for their children coming up through the Ikumbo school system. In a moment that was incredibly special to me, I had the opportunity to share a printed “yearbook” of the first class of graduates containing photos and profiles of all the students. The parents passed the book around, smiling as they pointed out their kin. At one point, a grandmother likely in her 70’s read the passage in English to the woman sitting next to her. In a group of farmers, most of whom did not have the opportunity to complete even primary school, this was amazing to watch.

The Wedding

September 31, 2011

My whirlwind trip to Kenya is coming to a close. One week after my brother’s wedding in Seattle, WA I was at another brother’s wedding in Kenya. Three days in the village were far too few. Now a relaxing public holiday (Eid al-Fitr) in Nairobi to catch up on some sleep and reflect. Here, in a few parts, are some brief stories from my hectic five day stay in Kenya:

Arrival
Touching down in Kenya was like coming home. Pulling out of the airport I caught the familiar smell of red clay and it was like I hadn’t been gone even a day. It’s amazing how smell has the most vivid association with memories. Of course my driving later on the in the trip would call into question just how strong my memory is, but at that moment I was feeling good to be in my former city.
The first evening was the eve of Davis’ wedding. Davis, Rufus (one of Davis’ groomsmen), and I ran around until midnight getting things in order for the morning. Finally, Davis and I crashed at his new apartment in Nairobi.

Wedding Day
Davis was up at 5am in anticipation. I was up at 6am to drive Davis to the church. Though I was sad to have not been able to spend time with Davis and his wonderful bride Lucy in the months since they met, I had the privilege of sharing a few quite personal moments with the pair throughout the day – the final minutes pre-marriage with the groom, the drive with the couple to their honeymoon hotel, an evening chat with the pair as I dropped off their luggage for their journey to Mombasa. I am very grateful for the alignment of the stars that allowed me to drop into Kenya for the wedding on my way to Zambia.

Davis prepares for the wedding

Lucy arrives

Davis with his groomsmen

The wedding service took place at a church in Nairobi West. The highlight for me was watching Davis and Lucy’s faces throughout the service as they shared beaming smiles and frequent laughs from their overflowing happiness. Lucy looked amazing in her beautiful wedding dress.

Stunning and happy

Though the service included lots of ceremony, particularly involving the couple’s families beyond a traditional American wedding, it still felt quite personal because of the magnetism of Davis and Lucy’s love for each other. Otherwise, the ceremony was very similar to what we are used to in the US. Exchange of vows, rings, and signing of the marriage certificate.

The reception afterwards was also a mix of familiar and new. Three hundred and fifty people attended the party. It was held in an open field and several tents were put-up with seating. When the bride and groom entered about half the group greeted them with ululation (that high-pitched li-li-li-li sound women make with their tongues) and dancing. We danced in a parade-like fashion around the tents for a half-hour or so before taking our seats again. Then the There were a few more traditions as we know them. Cutting the cake, speeches from parents and family. They invited several important people and organizations to give gifts and (long) speeches during the reception as well. The afternoon ended with lots of photos with the happy couple.

Post reception the couple is relaxed

Finally, I had the privilege to drive Davis and Lucy to their downtown Nairobi hotel in Davis’ car. I think this is an amazing reflection on how down to earth they are. They don’t need limos. They helped clean up and organize rides for all their families. They only needed each other.

Mimi naenda Kenya! (Going home to Kenya!)

Tomorrow afternoon I get on a plane bound for Nairobi. I will have a 6-day stay-over in Kenya on my way to Lusaka, Zambia, where I'll be living for the next 10 months. First up on the agenda, get the groom ready for his big walk down the aisle. Davis (Karambi, Harambee for All Children Co-Founder) is getting married on Saturday!!!

After the celebration I'll head up to Ikumbo for 3 days to catch up with family, greet the students of Ikumbo Secondary, and check on the progress our our latest endeavors at the school. In particular I hope to get a chance to speak with the 19 students who formed our first class of graduates. For 4-8 months they have been attending technical colleges in the region. Most of the group will be home for the 4-week summer holiday. I hear great things about how much the experiences have impacted the students but I can't wait to see it in person. Also looking forward to enjoying the presence of electricity in the village.

Bottom line, lots to report on. Look at for posts from me over the coming weeks. I will take lots of photos and videos to share with you.

The Story of Davis Karambi

The story of Harambee for All Children is intertwined with the life of Davis Karambi. His story began in Ikumbo, a town located in the Eastern Province of Kenya, one hundred miles northeast of Nairobi. There he was raised by his grandmother, a hard‐working woman who instilled in Davis a strong devotion to education. Davis received high marks in school as a young man and was selected to attend one of the finest secondary schools in the region. His grandmother, however, could only raise the funds to send Davis to school for one term. She sent him nonetheless, stating that even a short exposure would be worth the sacrifice.

Davis attended the first semester but as expected, he was unable to gather the money to return for the next term. When the second term began, though, the principal of the school visited Davis and his grandmother in Ikumbo to share his exam results: Davis had earned the highest grades in his class. Upon hearing Davis’ explanation for dropping out, the principal initiated a fundraiser to cover Davis’s school fees. Davis’ grandmother also gathered the people of Ikumbo together for a harambee, a communitywide fundraising meeting. Through the generosity of his teachers and fellow villagers, Davis returned to school with renewed vigor and purpose. He achieved top grades throughout secondary school and received a full scholarship to study at Strathmore University in Nairobi, one of the country’s most prestigious private colleges. While in university he not only excelled as a student but also matured into a steward of his community. Upon graduation Davis received the University’s highest honor in community service for his work on the nascent Ikumbo Secondary School. He continues to direct his passion for education into a mission for his community: to endow every child in Ikumbo with the same opportunities for advancement he had received.

Davis is currently a mentor to many of the students of Ikumbo Secondary, and member of the Ikumbo Secondary Board of Governors. He has also led the creation of the Ikumbo Education Trust, a mechanism to provide savings and scholarship opportunities to the students and parents of Ikumbo. Davis has worked for the Clinton Foundation Health Access Initiative in Nairobi, Kenya since 2007. He is engaged to Lucy Kithinji. The two will be wed in August 2011 in Nairobi.

Isaac Marete, Ikumbo Secondary Alumnus ('10)